Apparatus and method for accurately filling containers



P. R. FECHHEIMER Nov. 24, 1953 APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR ACCURATELY FILLING CONTAINERS 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 27, 1950 INVENTOR. 341/ ii? Fcm/E/nmg ATTO RN EYS- Nov. 24, 1953 P. R. FECHHEIMER APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR ACCURATELY FILLING CONTAINERS Filed May 27, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 I N V EN TOR. P401. li-cwflslmze,

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ATTQ RNEYS- Nov. 24, 1953 P. R. FECHHEIMER APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR ACCURATELY FILLING CONTAINERS Filed May 27, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 In a/111,,

INVENTOR. Fhuz. 7 FZ'cn/HE/Mng ATTORN :Ys- H Patented Nov. 24, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR ACCU- RA'IELY FILLING CONTAINERS Paul R. Fechheimer, Cincinnati, Ohio, assignor to The Karl Kiefer Machine Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application May 27, 1950, Serial No'. 164 ,71

10 Claims. 1

My invention relates to machines and methods of filling containers such as bottles wherein a seal is made with the top of the bottle throughwhich seal a filling tube and an exhaust tube extend, and hence are inserted into the bottle, and in which the air in thebottle is exhausted through the vent tube while the contents flow into the bottle through the filling tube under a head produced wholly or in part by the exhaustion of the tube. A principal object of my invention is the attainment of extreme accuracy of fill in machines of this type by simpler, less expensive and more expeditious means.-

In my copending application Serial No. 8,885 filed February 17, 1948 and entitled Machine for Filling Containers,.I- have shown a filling machine in which, through a filling tube extending downwardly toa position near. their bottoms, the bottles or other containers are filled to the level of the end of the exhaust tube lying near their mouths, this fill, taking into account the displacement produced by the filling tube, amounting to a substantial overfilL- When the overfilling has been accomplished, the bottles or other containers are lowered to a point at which the end of the filling tube lies exactly at the desired height of fill, the seal at the tops of the bottles being broken or relieved at the time of such lowering. The connections are then reversed, vacuum is applied to the filling tube, and the excess liquid, constituting the overfill, is drawn ofi. Such a procedure has many advantages. The filling height canbe adjusted by positioning an adjustable cam, determining the point to which the bottles will be lowered for withdrawing overfill. This is very much simpler than attempting to adjust all of a plurality of filling spout structures (frequently as many as 24) on the filling machine; and the cam adjustment can be accomplished while the machine is running. On the other hand, the reversal of the connections aforesaid requires a relatively complicated and expensive valving mechanism, and also a long rise and fall ofthe containers in the machine. Thus the capacity of the machine, as to the variety of containers it can fill, becomes limited to a relatively narrow range of container heights.

Hitherto in afilling. machine in'which the-containers are exhausted, there has not been any mode of dependably securing an overfill excepting that just described, namely, the use of a relatively long filling tube and arelatively short exhaust tube so that the-height of the overfill is determined by the position of the end of the exhaust tube; this-arrangement in turrrnec'essitating a reversal of connections, so that the excess filling. material can be drawn off through the filling tube. 7

It is an object of my invention to provide a mode of operation. and a mechanism wherein the" height of the overfill is not determined by the. position of the ends of the filling and exhaust tubes during the filling operation. Specifically, it is an object of the invention to provide a mode and apparatus for filling a sealed container beyond the level established by the end of; the vent tube and without a reversal of connections to. the vent and filling tubes. I

It is an object of my invention to provide a mode of operation and an apparatus involving the use of a filling spout having exhaust and fillin tubes (usually but not necessarily concentric)", in which the ends of the tubes may be substantially coterminous, and in which the container may be overfilled beyond the ends of the tubes, after which the container maybe lowered and the excess drawn oil through the vent tube.

It is an object of my invention to provide an apparatus for the purposes described which, while providing extreme accuracy of fill, will not suffer in rapidity of operation, and will be cheaper; simpler and less likely to failthan accurate fill apparatus hitherto available.

These and other objects of my invention, which will be set forth hereinafter or will be apparent to one skilled in the art upon reading these specifications, I accomplish in that procedure and apparatus, of which I shall now describe an ex; emplary embodiment. Reference is made, to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is adiagrarnmatic representation of'a filling operation in which the container is ex"- hausted. and: the filling material is drawn into it at a pressure below atmospheric pressure.

Figure 2 is a diagrammatic representation of an operation in which a withdrawal tube is providedto withdraw the air from the container, but the contents are introducedunder su-peratmospheric pressure. s

Figure 31s a diagrammatic representation of a filling machine employin -the principles of this invention.

Figure 4 isa partial sectionalview ot a filling spout, sealaandcontainer in filling assembly Figure 5- is a partial-sectional view of afilling spout assembly. Y

Figure 6' isja more complete View of a filling spout assembl-yl Figure 7- is an' elevational' viewioi a filiing spout assembly including a centering belll Figure 8 is a partial sectional view of a filling mechanism in which a chamber, for purposes hereinafter described, is formed in the sealing mechanism.

Figure 9 is a partial vertical sectional view of a filling head in which the filling and exhaust chambers are provided with internal valve means.

Figure 10 is a partial horizontal section taken along the line |Bl of Figure 9.

Figure 11 is a partial horizontal section taken along the line ll--ll of Figure 9.

Referring to Figure 1, which is purely diagrammatic in nature, it will be seen that if a container l is sealed, as at 2, at the neck with the introduction of a filling tube 4 and a withdrawal or vacuum tube 5, contents from a reservoir 6 may be drawn into the container through the filling tube 4 as the air is exhausted from it by the vent tube. If the relative sizes of the tubes, i. e. their specific resistances to the flow of materials, considering the degree of vacuum in the tube and the negative head if any of the liquid in the tube 4, are such that the exhaust tube can carry away just as much fluid as is introduced bythe filling tube, the container will fill to the lower end of the exhaust tube and no further, the pressure of the air remaining in the container above the liquid being that required to counterbalance the negative head of the liquid at the filling tube orifice. If, however, the exhaust 'tube is so arranged as to be capable of withdrawing the air from the container at a more rapid rate than the liquid is introduced by the filling tube 4 (as can be accomplished by enlarging the efiective diameter of the exhaust tube as compared with the efiective diameter of the filling tube, or by restricting the flow of liquid through the filling tube, or by employing a more viscous liquid which encounters greater resistance in filling through the filling tube), then depending upon the vacuum source connected to the exhaust tube 5, a greater degree of vacuum will be drawn into the container than that required to counterbalance the negative head of the liquid in the filling tube 4. The container will again fill to a level demarked by the end of the exhaust tube; but if after this happens a valve 1 in the exhaust line is closed, the liquid will continue to fiow until the negative pressure of the air above the liquid in the container I becomes equal to the negative head of the liquid in the filling tube 4. Thus the level of the liquid will rise above the end of the exhaust tube 5 and the container will be overfilled to some height such as that indicated at B, as compared with the level A at the orifice of the exhaust tube. A valve 8 in the filling line may then be closed, and the seal 2 broken by lowering the bottle to some predetermined position at which the desired height of fill will be demarked by the lower end of the vacuum tube 5. The desired height of fill and hence the position of the lower end of the tube 5 will, of course, lie somewhere between the levels A and B. If the valve I be now opened, excess fiuid contents will be withdrawn from the container through the exhaust tube 5 to establish exactly the predetermined height of fill.

The same effect may be secured by certain variants of procedure. For example, if at a time when the liquid level in the container approaches or lies at the level A, the valve 8 be closed so that no more filling material can enter the container, air or liquid will continue to be withdrawn through the tube 5, rarefying the atmos phere remaining in the container until the degree of vacuum therein substantially equals that of the vacuum source connected with the exhaust tube 5 less the effect of restrictions in the vacuum line. At this point, if the valve 1 be closed and the valve 8 opened, liquid will again flow into the container until the degree of vacuum therein counterbalances the negative head of the liquid filling material in the filling tube 4, and in this way, the liquid level may be caused to rise within the container, as at B, above the ends of the filling and exhaust tubes. Then the valve 8 may be closed, the seal broken by lowering the container, and the excess filling material drawn ofi as described above, upon the opening of the valve 1.

Filling machines, in which the contents are introduced into a container under greater than atmospheric pressure while at the same time the container is exhausted through a vent tube, are known in the art. The principles of this invention can be applied to such filling machines with a variant of procedure. Under the particular circumstances outlined, whether any air remaining in the container is at atmospheric pressure or at a lesser or greater pressure will, during the filling operation, depend upon the rates of flow of the filling material into the container and of the contained atmosphere out of the container through the vent tube. These rates of fiow can be controlled, as above, by controlling the effective diameters of the filling and exhaust tubes, by placing adjustable control valves in these lines, and in other ways. But if the rate of withdrawal of the atmosphere during filling tends to be equal to or greater than the rate of introduction of the contents, then any atmosphere remaining in the container will be either at atmospheric pressure or at somewhat less than atmospheric pressure. Under these circumstances, if after the liquid has reached the ends of the filling and exhaust tubes at the level A in Figure 2, a valve 9 in the exhaust tube It is closed, liquid under greater than atmospheric pressure Will continue to fiow into the container ll through the filling tube 12 until the positive pressure of the remaining atmosphere in the container counterbalances the positive head of the filling material represented in Figure 2 diagrammatically as coming from an elevated reservoir 13. Thus the liquid level in the container will rise beyond the ends of the tubes to some level B. At this point a valve 34 in the filling line may be closed and the seal 2 broken by lowering the container. If a spitting difficulty is encountered by reason of the excess pressure within the container, this may be alleviated in various ways, such as by opening the valve 9 in the exhaust line substantially coincidentally with the breaking of the seal, or by venting the container to the atmosphere before breaking the seal through a valve in the seal, not shown in Figure 2. r

The spitting to which reference has been made may be caused by bubbles of air which have not broken up when the time arrives to lower the container away from the seal and also by the fact that the interior of the container at the time is under superatmospherie pressure. When the pressure is lowered to atmospheric by the breaking of the seal, these bubbles may expand, burst, and throw some liquid upward through the neck. It is quite possible to keep the vacuum or exhaust line open or partially open so long as a container is in position on an elevated or partially elevated tray or platform. Keeping the exhaust open in this way, a variant of procedure is to cut the pressure of the incoming liquid, first,

when the container is partially full, so as to per-- mit the rarefieat-ion of the remaining air in it, and second, just before the. seal is broken and the container lowered to the intermediate or drawofi position. When the pressure on the incoming liquid is cut as by restricting the filling line, the vacuum quickly exhausts thepressure in. the com tainer so that no spitting occurs when the seal is. broken. In the various. ways set forth above, a dependable and adequate overfill can normally be obtained. In filling operations there is time enough to accomplish this. because. the actual overfilling does not. take longer than the normal dwell which is provided to. permit foam to sub.- side. The. overfill. of course, occurs. above the lower nd of the filling tube; and hence the: material introduced to. produce. the. cverfill is; not. tseli susceptible. to teamin one other factor may afiect. operations. suchas hereinabove described. This factor is the actual volume of, the atmosphere remaining in.

the container after the liquid level has reached. the ends of the filling; and exhaust tubes. In containers such as bottles having relatively wide and elongated necks, a sufficient volume of air is ordinarily present to. give. an adequate overfill in the methods taught above. It will be understood that the overfillmust be sufiicient to. accommodate the displacement of the filling and exhaust tubesv as the container is lowered to the predetermined, position, and still provide an excess of contents. to be drawn oli through the exhaust tube to lower the liquid level to an exact and predetermined height. In containers such as bottles having elongated necks of relatively very small internal diameter, or in bottles having very shortnecks, which. bottles must nevertheless be filled quite full to attain the desired volume of contents, an inadequate air space may. be provided. Under these circumstances it is within the scope of my invention to augment the air space by pro- Vi'ding additional enclosed air space outside the container but in communication therewith. In Figure 8- I have shown a bottle l5 being filled through the agencyof a filling tube It and an exhaust tube ll. These tubes are concentric, as. is conventional, and they form a filling stem. This stem bears a sealing element having a hollow elongated body I8, a seal 19* against the stem and a seal 28 against the neck of the bottle. It will 'be seen that thiselementprovides an internal air space 24 of. substantial volume and in communication with the airspace inside the bottle t5; For pressure filling operations the body It may be. provided, if desired, with avalved vent 21 whereby pressure can be relieved onthe container prior to the breaking of the seal to avoid spitting. It. will be understood, of course, that the processes hereinabove should not be carried on with the apparatus ofFigure 8. in such a way as. to cause liquid to enter the. body not the ea-ling; element. It a. container, in. order to get into. it the desired volume of contents, must be filled to a point so; close. to; theupper end ofthe neck of the bottle. that. no roomv is left for an actual eiiect-ive. overfill, then. the teachings of this application donot apply.

I all n w d ribe. certain specific. embodiments, of apparatus with which. the; processes hereinabove set forth may be practi ce.d. Referonce, is made to. Figure; 3 wherein. 2.3v represents the main column of. a; filling machinet. rotating wi h a. table 2.4 bearing a p uralityofl platform elements. 25. m the reccptionoibottles 25'. The

platforms, during the rotation or the table, may be raised and lowered to and from various heights by mechanisms such as are shown in the copending application referred to above. In the embodiment illustrated in Figure 3, the platform element 25 is mounted on rod lill' having teeth m2 at its lower end, the rod being vertically slidable through table 24. A bifurcated lever arm 193 is pivoted at one end in bracket I04 beneath the table 24. Intermediate its ends the lever arm I03 carries. cam following roller H15 engaging a cam 1% on the frame of the machine. At its opposite end, the lever armcontains pinion I01, which not only meshes with the teeth I02 on the vertically reciprocable rod I01, but also with the teeth of rack member I08, depending from table 24 and fixed thereto. In this way, the movement of the outer end of lever arm 103 is multipled in producing up-and-down movement of the tray-carrying vertically movable rod- NH.

The head is divided into two compartments in the specific embodiment, the lower compartment 2?: being a compartment for the filling fluid, and the upper compartment 28 being a vacuum or overflow compartment, the two being separated by a diaphragm 29 To accommodate containers of varying heights, the central column element 23 is made adjustable up and down by known means. Centrally of the column there is a conduit 3%) connecting with thechamber 21- and movable up and down with the adjustment of the height of the column in a gland 3| in a fitting 32. The conduit 39 is also rotatable in the fitting 32 to permit rotation of the-column and head. A conduit 33 connects the fitting 32 with a reservoir H for the filling material. This reservoir-may-befed from a source of supply, not shown, through a: conduit 35; and it is usual to provide a float 3 8 actuating a valve 31 in communication with the conduit 3'5 so that the height of the fluid 38 in the reservoir may be maintained and controlled.

The head element having the chambers 21- and 23 is provided with an annular supporting element 3tcarrying various holders 40'. for the filling spout. mechanisms hereinafter described. Conduits such as l l connect the head filling chamber 27 with these holders. Likewise, corrduits such as :2 connect the vacuum or exhaust chamber 28 with the holders. The vacuum or exhaust chamber is provided with a gland 43 rotatably and slidably engaging a vacuum conduit i l, the lower end of which is customarily held by a bracket 45; engaging a post. 46 on the frame ll of themachine. The reservoir as. may also. be mounted. on this-.firame as well as a trap element. 48 connected with the vacuum. or exhaust conduit id. and also through a conduit 39 and a pressure controlling valve, if desired, with a vacuum pump (not shown);

An impeller is may be located in the bottom of the trap t8 and drivenby amotor 5 so as to transfer fiuid coming over in the exhaust conduit at through aconduit EZ'back to the reservoir iii.

In Figure 4 I have shown in section one: form of filling stem construction comprising concentric tubes 53 and 54. These tubes have respective orifices 55 and 5'5 located substantially at the same level. Either. tube may be a filling or an exhaust tube as desired; and. the stemmay be provided at its end witha fitting 51 for facilitate ing the entry of the stem into the bottleZfi. The stem carries, preferably adj ustably, an; element 7- 58 which'bears a sealing element 59 for contacting the top of the neck of the bottle, as shown.

A somewhat different stem is indicated in Figure 7 having a central exhaust tube 59 opening through the tapered bottom end of an outer filling tube 66. This tube is closed by the tube 59 at its lower end, but passageways for the exit of the filling fiuid are formed, as at 6!. This stem will also be provided with a suitable form of adjustable sealing element 62.

It is frequently of assistance in filling machines of this type to provide for each filling head and each platform 25 a centering bell for insuring the proper positioning of the necks of the containers. Such a centering bell is shown at 63 in Figure 7. It is mounted on rods 64 and 65 which are vertically slidable in the filling head mechanism.

In filling machines of the type described, it is a general practice to provide valving means for connecting the filling and exhaust tubes to the respective filling and exhaust conduits 4i and 42, and disconnecting them therefrom, so that the bottle will actuate these valving means. Such an arrangement has the advantage that neither the filling nor the exhaust conduit will be opened up if no container happens to rest upon the platform 25. I may employ such devices in the practice of my invention. Many arrangements have been suggested, and I am not limited to any one of them. I will herein describe a particular construction, it being understood that this construction does not constitute a limitation upon my invention. As shown most clearly in Figures and 6, each of the holder elements 40 is perforated vertically, as at 66. Upper and lower plug elements 5'! and 68 are employed, fitting in either end of the bore '66. A C-clamp element 69 is employed to hold the plugs in the bore. The

filling tube Eii has a sliding fit in the lower plug 68 rendered liquid-tight by a sealing ring or gasket H3. The inner or exhaust tube 5% in this instance extends through the filling tube 69 and through an element H closing the upper end of the filling tube. The exhaust tube 59 has a sliding engagement in a bore 72 in the upper plug 61 and a sealing gasket 13 may be provided to seal the plug against the exhaust tube, while another sealing gasket 74 may be provided to seal the plug against the walls of the holder 40 at the bore 66.

A compression spring 15 is placed within the bore engaging the upper plug and a flange formed on the head H. A sealing gasket 16 is placed beneath this flange, and perforations '17 are formed in the filling tube 60 adjacent its upper end. It will be seen from this construction that as the neck of a bottle 26 engages the sealing element 59' or 62 on the filling stem and the bottle is raised by the platform 25, the filling stem will be driven upwardly. This raises the gasket I6 from its seat against the top of the plug 68 and also brings the perforations ll above the top of this plug so that the filling tube 60 now is placed in communication with the chamber between the plugs formed by the bore 66. This chamber is connected by a passageway 13 with the filling conduit M.

An annular groove"!!! is formed about the upper plug 6'! and is connected by a passageway 88 with the bore 12 in the upper plug within which the exhaust stem 59 slides. A passageway 8i connects the annular groove with the exhaust conduit 42.

The above described filling stem construction is exemplary only of constructions which I mayuse, and does not furnish all of the elements needed for the practice of my invention. It will be noted from the explanation above that certain valving actions must occur without vertical change in the position of the container. Hence, it becomes necessary to provide for these valving actions in the automatic operation of the machine. Depending upon which of the several processes outlined above is adopted, means may be required to close and open the vacuum or exhaust line, to close and open the filling line, or both. These means also may take various forms. One form, not herein illustrated, contemplates the provision of valves in the vacuum and filling lines 42, 4|, or in the continuations of these, 8| and 18 in the holder element 40, which valves have resiliently biased operating elements so located as to .be actuated at the proper times by stationary fingers or abutments on the machine. Valving arrangements actuated by stationary abutments on the machine are shown and described in my copending application, Serial No. 8,885, filed February 17, 1948, and entitled Machine for Filling Containers.

It is also possible to valve the heads individually by means actuated from the specific position of the containers. In Figures 5 and 6 herein, if draw-off of the overfill were not required with the container and hence the stem in an intermediately lowered position, the vacuum source could be cut ofi from vacuum tube 59 by having this tube closed at its upper terminus and by providing it with radial perforations which would coact with the aperture when the tube is in elevated position. Since it is desirable to have the vacuum or exhaust effective in the intermediate or draw-off position, and since it is desirable to conserve vacuum when there is no container in position, it is possible to disconnect the vacuum source from the vacuum tube 59 by valve means controlled from the centering bell 63, the valve means .being actuated by the bell suspending rods 64. Arrangements of this type are shown in the copending application Serial No. 8,885 referred to above. In the arrangements there shown and described, the sliding bell rods are wet by the liquid flowing through the vacuum line and in their vertical reciprocation carry some of this liquid to the outside of the stem casing. Therefore, a valve located in the vacuum passageway Si in a similar position to the micrometer valve 9| hereinafter described, but arranged to be vertically slidable, can be actuated by a member attached to the bell suspending rods 54 in such a way that it will be open in the intermediate or draw-01f position, while it will be closed in the extreme downward position of the bell. The valve, of course, will be open when the bell is in its uppermost position.

Another and preferable way of accomplishing the valving is by means of stationary elements located within the chambers 27 and 28 which, sliding against the surfaces of these chambers through which the conduits 4i and 42 are threaded, act directly as valves to close off these conduits at particular rotative positions or" the machine. In Figures 9, l0 and 11, I have shown respectively an enlarged vertical section of the machine head and horizontal sections of the upper or vacuum chamber 28 and of the lower or filling chamber 27. The vacuum conduit 44, which is maintained in fixed, non-rotative position in the chambers by means of the bracket 45,

AQQQiEQQ merits. of the rotation. oi the head. exten sboth. cham ers, and. here it ua sesth d anhrasmor septum as. a land 82 we video to keep the chambers. 21. and. iscla ed. from each other. he lower end o the c ndui 44; is closed by a plus $3, and per orations.- 8. are p ovided in the. conduit wit-hinthe chamber 2.8..

In each chamber a valve. element Q5 62 1 8.5 isaflixed to the conduit. 4k a d slidQS w th P ierence to. inside annular surfaces of the, chain .bers. of the head, as will be clear from Fi ures, and 11. The valve element 816 in the. lower chamber 21 (Figure 11) may have.. a portion to close oi? the filling line 41, as at. 81:, during the time in which a further rarefication of the at: mospher-e in the container is being attained: in accordance with the secondof the above described processes. This portion has a limited ciroum-e ferential extent so that it will again open up the filling conduit 4!, so as to permit theoverfill hereinabove described, followed by another portion 88 closing ofi the filling tube 4! during the time when the container is lowered, the excess or over-fill drawn off, and thebottle 26 removed from the platform. Similarly, as in Figure 10, the valve element 85 in the vacuum chamber 28 may have a portion 89- for cutting 01? the vacuum during the breakingof the seal, and for reestablishing it on the exhaust tube for the purpose of drawing off the overfill', followed by a portion 99 for closingoff the exhaust tube 42 when the bottle is removed from the platform. Different configurations of the valve elements andi be provide ior the ractice, oi a y of the processes outlined above, as will be readily understood.

The effective internal diameters of the filling and exhau u of the. st rn. suc as the tub t3. a d 5. o F ur e or the tub s 59 and. lie o F ure 2 m be so p op rtioned, takin into acc unt t ei len th. the viscosity f the fillin mat rial. and th resis ances t flo provided by the several exhaust and filling connections, as to give the desired ratio of flow for the practice of my processes. However, it is more convenient to provide adjustable means for this purpose, especially since the over-all diameter of a filling stem must usually be limited to that which will easily fit in the neck opening of the smallest container 0 to be filled. Accordingly, in Figure 6 I have indicated micrometer valves 9| and 92 arranged in each holder 68 and respectively adjusta-bly controlling the passage of fiuid through the passageways !8 and BI in the head.

If the filling material is to be introduced into the containers under supcratmospheric pressure, I close the reservoir 34 by means of a lid 93, and I apply pressure to the interior of the reservoir 34, as by means of a conduit 94 connecting the reservoir with a source of air under pressure (not shown). .A pressure regulating valve 95 may be placed in this line, as desired. The impeller will in this event be so designed and powered as to empty the trap 48 against the pressure inside the reservoir 34. I also prefer to provide a valve 95 in the line 94 which is a three-Way valve actuated by a solenoid 91. The solenoid 91 may be connected into the circuit of the main motor driving the filling machine so that so long as this motor is energized, the solenoid will also be energized to connect the line 94 with the source of air under pressure. But if the machine should be stopped, as by de-energization of the main dri inginqtce th va ve itv will e, re eased by solenoid ill-x Wh reupon. a spring: at willxncre the alveto asecond positio which the r set veir it is vented; to the; a mosphere as at 9 in?- the immediate r lie oi suner txneenheri pres;- sur sai advantag at this arrangement it the: machine-m any reason. is st pped. a l of the containers then, n. h mach ne il ul i: mate r fill. and b gin. over ow ng h ough the ven tube 59;, it is advisable ta red ce this overflow as much as nu s b e sin e otherwise a lar e vcluine 0i. ie id, uld have t be handled throu h he o erflow lin includi g he uto mati trap and alereeau m ictr p wouldhave ts: be gravid Redu i g he p ess r b hind the interning fl id whe the. ma n is stern-eel v reduces the: cve flew under he c rcumstances.-

l iodi-i caticnsma be made m in ention w heut departing irnui t e pi it o t. Having th sv described my inve ti n in ce tain. exemp ary n s. t at I c a m. as e and de ire be the e Pa ent, is:

latene s eii iii-line: c nta ner which. orm arises. int oducin lieu-id filling substa ce into a. conta ner" through a fil ing s ha ng a seal s: filling and exhau t tubesa said into conta nerand. serv ng smalls c-det rm ne height if 51 nrcu us an ov rall ei the cn ainer hr es abl hin a co ditinu or lowe of; a mos her r main-...g in the container utter the iquid has reached the end of; ai steint i nt P ssure under: hi liquid te enter sa d c ntainerby xhau ting eutieicnt thruueh aid; exhaust; tuba, closing said. exhaust tube thcrebr nrcdu ine an o eral of the container and, when such overfill has been at ineamo ins. the con ainer and a d t relative o each o her aeccmnan d. hr the b eakins: or said; seat. an withdraw .e; xcess iquid from Said ontainer hrou h sa d exh st tubea The r cess claimed c im. l. in whic t en c ir lv l at p ess re of; sa d; atmcsnhere is attained. hr wit drawing item said container at: a tester rate than iguid permitted to enter it through the filling tube and, when the liquid level reaches the end of the exhaust tube, shutting off the said exhaust tube while permitting liquid to fiow into the container to equalize said pressures.

3. The process claimed in claim 1 in which said effectively lower pressure of said atmosphere is attained by filling the container substantially to the level of the end of said stem, then closing off the filling tube while permitting the pressure of said atmosphere within the container to be lowered through said exhaust tube, afterward closing off said exhaust tube, and reopening said filling tube to permit said-overfill through said equalization of pressures.

4. The process claimed in claim 1 wherein said lower pressure of the atmosphere Within said container is attained, while introducing contents into the container under superatmospheric pressure by exhausting said container at so rapid a rate as to lower the pressure therein below said superatmospheric pressure until the liquid level in said container reaches the end of said stem, afterward closing off the exhaust tube and permitting material under superatmospheric pressure to enter said container and compress the atmosphere therein whereby to attain an overfill, and then closing of the filling tube prior to the breaking of said seal.

5. In container filling apparatus, a head element formed to provide two chambers one for filling material and the other for suction, at least one filling spout structure associated with said head, said filling spout having filling and exhaust tubes with lower openings at substantially the same horizontal level and a seal for closing the mouth of a container, said seal so located as to permit entry of said spout into a container with said openings lower than a desired level of fill, means to present a container to said spout so as to seal the mouth of said container for filling and. afterward to lower said container to a second position at which said openings determine the said desired level of fill, a reservoir for filling material in communication with said first mentioned chamber and a connection between said first-mentioned chamber and said filling tube, a vacuum pump in communication with said second mentioned chamber and a connection between said second mentioned chamber and said exhaust tube, and valve means in said chambers for selectively closing off and opening the connections between said filling spout and said chambers, said valve means acting to establish a lower pressure of atmosphere remaining in said container after a filling substance introduced therein through said filling tube has reached the level of said openings than the pressure under which said filling substance seeks to enter said container, and to cause entry of additional filling substance into said container to equalize said pressure and establish an overfill.

6. The structure claimed in claim wherein the inner surfaces of said chamber are annular in configuration and said valve means comprises valve elements slidable with reference to the annular surface of said chambers.

7. The structure claimed in claim 6 wherein said valve elements are connected to a common fixed shaft, and said head element is rotatable with respect to said valve elements.

8. In container filling apparatus, a head element formed to provide two chambers one for filling material and the other for suction, a filling spout structure associated with said head, said filling spout having filling and exhaust tubes with lower openings at substantially the same horizontal level and a seal for closing the mouth of a container, said seal so located as to permit entry of said spout into a container with said openings lower than a desired level of fill, a connection between said first mentioned chamber and said filling tube and a connection between said second mentioned chamber and said exhaust tube, means to present a container to said spout in a filling position at which the mouth of the container is sealed for filling and afterwards to lower said container to a second position at which said openings determine the desired level of fill, valve means in the connections between said filling and exhaust tubes and said chambers, said valve means acting to open both connections upon movement of a container to said first position, and acting upon movement of said container to the second position to close the connection between said first mentioned chamber and said filling tube, and additional valve means for closing and opening said connections when said container is in said first position.

9. The structure claimed in claim 8 wherein the inner surfaces of said chambers are annular in configuration and said additional valve means comprises valve elements slidable with reference to the annular surfaces of said chambers.

10. The structure claimed in claim 8 wherein the connections between said chambers and said tubes include adjustment valves to control the rate of flow of fluid through said tubes.

PAUL R. FECHHEIMER.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,437,917 Shelor Dec. 5, 1922 1,737,677 Pennock Dec. 3, 1929 1,763,240 Kiefer June 10, 1930 2,136,421 Everett Nov. 15, 1938 2,509,756 Berthelson May 30, 1950 

